M.Ed Professional School Counselor 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A school counselor is asked by a teacher to share what a student discussed in a private session. The counselor should:
- Share all relevant information to support the teacher
- Decline and explain the limits of confidentiality
- Share only academic concerns, not personal disclosures
- Ask the student's permission before deciding (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Ask the student's permission before deciding
The student's consent should be sought first; breaching confidentiality without cause violates the counselor-student relationship.
Question 2: Which federal law protects the privacy of student education records and limits who can access them without consent?
- HIPAA
- IDEA
- FERPA (Correct answer)
- Section 504
Correct answer: FERPA
FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) governs access to student educational records in schools receiving federal funding.
Question 3: A counselor working with a student from a collectivist cultural background finds the student reluctant to discuss family problems. The counselor should:
- Insist on full disclosure to properly assess the situation
- Respect the student's boundaries and adapt the counseling approach (Correct answer)
- Refer the student to a counselor from the same background
- Document the student as uncooperative
Correct answer: Respect the student's boundaries and adapt the counseling approach
Culturally responsive counseling requires adapting approaches to honor students' cultural values, including family privacy norms.
Question 4: In solution-focused brief counseling (SFBC), the 'miracle question' is used to:
- Diagnose underlying psychological disorders
- Help clients envision a future where the problem is solved (Correct answer)
- Assess the severity of the presenting problem
- Establish the counselor's therapeutic goals
Correct answer: Help clients envision a future where the problem is solved
The miracle question invites clients to imagine life without their problem, helping them identify goals and existing strengths.
Question 5: Which component of the ASCA National Model addresses how counselors spend their time and what activities constitute appropriate counseling practice?
- Beliefs
- Management
- Accountability
- Delivery (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Delivery
The Delivery component describes the direct and indirect student services through which the school counseling program is implemented.
Question 6: A high school senior with a disability needs accommodations on college entrance exams. The school counselor's role is to:
- Make accommodation decisions on behalf of the student
- Inform the student of the process and help coordinate documentation (Correct answer)
- Leave all decisions to the special education department
- Advise the student to skip standardized testing
Correct answer: Inform the student of the process and help coordinate documentation
School counselors serve as advocates and guides, ensuring students understand and can access the accommodation request process.
Question 7: Which of the following BEST describes a school counselor's role in a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS)?
- Providing all student mental health services independently
- Serving as a collaborative team member in identifying and supporting at-risk students (Correct answer)
- Administering psychoeducational assessments for all students
- Disciplining students who do not respond to interventions
Correct answer: Serving as a collaborative team member in identifying and supporting at-risk students
In MTSS, school counselors collaborate with educators and specialists to identify students' needs and deliver or coordinate appropriate supports.
M.Ed Professional School Counselor 3
A school counselor is asked by a teacher to share what a student discussed in a private session.
The counselor should: